Prime Minister Mark Carney defended the federal emissions cap and environmental assessment policies during a speech at the Canadian Club in Toronto on Friday. He dismissed claims that these regulations are hindering energy projects, stating that critics are "wrong."

Carney's remarks came in response to ongoing criticism of the $78 billion deficit outlined in his government’s recent budget. He argued that reducing the deficit would necessitate cutting essential benefits and provincial transfers. "We can hunker down, slash the deficit, turn inwards, and in the words of The Tragically Hip, wait for the ‘trickle down,’" Carney said. He emphasized that such actions would eliminate vital social programs and hinder necessary investments.

Throughout his address, Carney highlighted his government’s budget as a means to stimulate private investment while reducing government spending. He noted that the Canadian economy is shifting focus away from the United States. During a question-and-answer session, Carney was asked by business journalist Amber Kanwar what advantages Canada has over the U.S. in attracting corporate investment. He responded, "the rule of law."

Kanwar also questioned why the government was not taking more risks in its budget. She pointed out that the energy sector believes that policies from the Justin Trudeau era, including the emissions cap and the Impact Assessment Act, are obstructing project proposals to Carney’s newly established Major Projects Office. Carney firmly replied, "They’re wrong. They’re wrong because, literally, we are getting projects coming in. We’re in discussions with the province of Alberta directly on things."

The government’s budget hints at a potential repeal of the contentious oil and gas cap. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has been a vocal opponent of the emissions cap and the Impact Assessment Act, claiming they have severely impacted Alberta’s economy. She has called for the repeal of what she terms nine "bad laws" and is advocating for a proposal to construct a million-barrel-a-day bitumen pipeline from Edmonton to British Columbia’s northern coast to be expedited by the Major Projects Office.

When asked about the approval of new pipeline projects, Carney humorously dismissed the inquiry as "boring" and engaged the audience by asking if anyone was involved in pipeline work. After seeing no hands raised, he reassured the audience, saying, "Don’t worry, we’re on the pipeline stuff. Danielle’s (Smith) on line one. Don’t worry, it’s going to happen. Well, something’s going to happen. Let’s put it that way."

Carney also suggested that new data centers and intelligence infrastructure would significantly enhance productivity and improve Canadians’ standard of living more than new pipelines would. His government has shown increasing frustration with questions from journalists and the energy sector regarding the timeline for new pipeline proposals to the Major Projects Office. Recently, Energy Minister Tim Hodgson described inquiries about building a new oil pipeline as an "overfocusing" on a "hypothetical."

Carney’s speech followed a busy week for the Liberal government, which included the budget announcement, the addition of a former Conservative MP to their ranks, and the successful navigation of two confidence votes related to the budget. With Conservative MP Chris d’Entremont joining the government, the Liberals are now just two seats short of a majority. At the conclusion of the event, Carney humorously noted the need for a couple more MPs to secure a majority and encouraged attendees to contact their local MPs if they were not Liberals before thanking the audience and leaving the stage.